Supernatural Underground Halloween Giveaway

On All Hallows Eve, the sky darkens, the wind blows, and everyone dons costumes, a futile attempt to disguise themselves from the supernatural creatures that are allowed to prowl the streets, one night a year. Ghosts, werewolves, vampires, shape shifters, mermaids and Selkies—these are the sort of creatures that make the rest of the world tremble. But here, well, that’s a different story.

Here, we invite the monsters inside. We open the door willingly. Monsters and ghosts and shape shifters get the best seat at our table. We sit, rapt, as they tell us their Halloween Tale of Woe. We lean forward, eager to find out what happens next.

Their stories are like candy to us.

And isn’t that what everyone freely gives away on Halloween—handfuls of delicious candy? That’s what we’re doing, right here, right now. The authors at Supernatural Underground are giving away candy this month.

We’re giving away a Supernatural Underground Halloween Book Prize Pack, filled with 24 books, all written by Supernatural Underground authors. All you have to do is fill out the Rafflecopter at the bottom of the page.

The list of amazing books in this giveaway is below.

PLEASE NOTE: Some of these books are e-books, so the winner should have access to an e-reader.

THE SUPERNATURAL UNDERGROUND HALLOWEEN BOOK PRIZE PACK:

The Body Finder and swag by Kimberly Derting

Nightspell by Leah Cypess

Ascension by Sable Grace

Afterlife + Fathom (e-book) by Merrie Destefano

A Blood Seduction by Pamela Palmer

Wrong Side of Hell + To Hell And Back (both e-books) by Juliana Stone

The Heir of Night, US edition by Helen Lowe

Dream of Asarlai trilogy (Secret Ones, Power Unbound, Rogue Gadda) in e-book by Nicole Murphy

Night Forbidden by Joss Ware

Angel's Ink by Jocelynn Drake

A Devil Named Desire by Terri Garey

Tatsania's Gift (e-book) by Kim Falconer

Darkness Becomes Her by Jaime Rush

Last Vamp Standing by Kristin Miller

Diamond Eyes by AA Bell

Wanted: Undead or Alive by Kerrelyn Sparks

One Grave at a Time + Once Burned by Jeaniene Frost

Diaries of an Urban Panther by Amanda Arista

Carrier of the Mark by Leigh Fallon

Just fill out the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win. Open internationally. Contest begins October 10 and ends October 31. Winner will be announced on November 1.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

25 Books to read when the winds howl and you’re home alone

Halloween is almost here and with it comes a desire to read books filled with spooky, otherworldly elements. I put together a list of my favorites, including some vampires and fairies and shape shifters, as well as other wonderfully creepy creatures. These are all books I’ve read and loved.

My list of recommended Halloween reading (and yes, some of my own books are on this list):

MONSTERS WITH A TWIST:
iDrakula by Bekka Black
iFrankestein by Bekka Black
Mr. Shivers by Robert Jackson Bennett
Dark Harvest by Norman Partridge

SHAPE SHIFTERS:
Feast by Merrie Destefano

THE APOCALYPSE:
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
The Plague Carrier by Merrie Destefano
Tomorrow, When the World Began by John Marsden
Dark Inside by Jeyn Roberts
How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff

FAIRIES:
Ironskin by Tina Connolly
The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff
Don’t Breathe a Word by Jennifer McMahon
The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

SELKIES/MERMAIDS:
Fathom by Merrie Destefano

SERIAL KILLERS:
Ten by Gretchen McNeil
Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsay
The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting

VAMPIRES:
The Strain by Guillermo del Toro
Let Me In by John Ajvide Lindgvist
I Am Legend by Richard Matheson

ZOMBIES:
Enclave by Ann Aguirre
Xombies: Apocalypse Blues by Walter Greatshell
The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan
Ashes by Ilsa J. Bick

How can I be two places at once?

The FATHOM Blog Tour officially begins today. YAY!!!

I'm two different places at once. (It's magic. Really.)

First, I'm at BookHounds, chatting about how my German shepherds "assist" me with the gardening. Ahem. AND we're giving away a copy of FATHOM.

YOU CAN VISIT BOOKHOUNDS HERE.

Here's a snippet of my interview at BookHounds:

Question: What is the last thing you Googled?

Great question! I’m working on a blog post about one of the main characters in Fathom, my young adult novel that releases on October 1. This particular character, a seventeen-year-old girl named Riley, is extremely rebellious and has a full-sleeve tattoo. So I was searching for photos of full-sleeve Japanese tattoos to include in my post.

And then, simultaneously, I'm at The Book Pushers, where I've written a guest post titled, When Imaginary People Take Over. *shivers*

YOU CAN VISIT THE BOOK PUSHERS HERE.

Here's a snippet of When Imaginary People Take Over:

Imaginary people shouldn’t influence your life. But if you’re a writer or reader, they definitely do. Case in point: Me. I was working on my second novel, Feast, when this character appeared out of nowhere. She wasn’t in my current novel, she wasn’t in anything I’d ever written before. I tried to ignore her but I just couldn’t, because oh my gosh, did she ever have a voice and a story to tell.


I hope you'll stop by the Tour Stops!

Fathom Blog Tour Dates

I just have to say that I am continually amazed and blessed by all the bloggers and reviewers who have agreed to be part of FATHOM's launch. I am incredibly honored to be surrounded by such an inspiring group of people.

Thank you all for being so wonderful as I prepare to indie publish my first YA novel. YOU ALL ROCK!!

So, here is the Fathom Blog Tour. Some of it consists of bloggers who have already or will review the book. Some of it consists of bloggers who will be posting guest posts or author interviews or other various promotional works of wonder. Some of these blogs will also be hosting giveaways (the giveaways are marked.)

I hope you will stop by and say, Hi!

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EARLY REVIEWS:

Book Chatter Cath

Vampire Book Club

Lady Techies Book Musings

The Writer's Sword

Just Us Girls

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BLOG TOUR DATES:

SEPT. 27
I Am Alive Blog
Review of Fathom

SEPT. 28
Book Hounds
Author Interview

SEPT. 28
The Book Pushers
Guest Post: When Imaginary People Take Over

SEPT. 30
Becky’s Barmy Book Blog
Fathom Promo

OCT. 1
I Smell Sheep
Fathom Launch Party

Oct. 1
Midnyte Reader
Guest Post: The Magic of Halloween

OCT. 2
Books N Kisses
Guest Post: Romance is a lot like Chocolate

OCT. 4
My Bookish Ways
Guest Post: Creating a New Monster

OCT. 5
I Am A Reader, Not A Writer
Author Interview & Giveaway of 2 FATHOM e-books

OCT. 6
Saturday Spotlight
For What It’s Worth
Guest Post: Making Tough Decisions

OCT. 8
A Backwards Story
Review of Fathom

OCT. 8
Sara's Urban Fantasy Blog
Guest Post: Is it Paranormal or Is it Fantasy?
Also, giveaway of 2 FATHOM e-books:

OCT. 9
I Smell Sheep
Author Interview

OCT. 11
Book and Things
Guest Post: Walking on the Dark Side
Giveaway of 3 Fathom e-books

Oct. 17
Short & Sweet Reviews
Author Interview

Oct.
Black N Gold Girl's Book Spot
Guest Post: The Scarier, The Better


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REVIEWS:

Literary Escapism

Good Choice Reading

The Travels of Sullivan McPig

Book Faery

Glitter in the Sun

Once Upon A Blog

Fiction Addict

My World...in Pages and Words

I Smell Sheep

Little Hyuts

Books are Wonderful Magic

Oh, For The Love of Books

The YA Bookworm

Bitten by Books

Dark Faerie Tales

All Things Books

Wayfaring Writer

The Compulsive Reader

Donna’s Blog Home

All Things Urban Fantasy

Once Upon A Bookcase

Short and Sweet Reviews

I’d So Rather Be Reading

Sweet Southern Home

Meet the characters from FATHOM

FIRST THINGS FIRST:
The winner of last week’s giveaway (4 YA ARCs) is…..
Melissa, from My World…in words and pages.
CONGRATS, MELISSA!! (Yay and round of applause.)

And, before I start this week's character introduction, I'd like to share another amazing review of FATHOM, this one written by Jo at the Vampire Book Club.

“Fathom had me feeling the entire emotional spectrum, I devoured it in a day. With a mixture of first love, a plot filled with emotional twist and a heart wrenching climax, I can only hope this is just beginning for Kira and Co. Fans of Rachel Vincent’s Soul Screamers series will want to look out for this one!”

Thanks so much for the wonderful review, Jo!

And now, for the FATHOM CHARACTER OF THE WEEK...

Today you'll meet the last of the four main characters in FATHOM. This girl is another one of the mysterious teenagers that comes to Crescent Moon Bay during tourist season—Riley.

Played by Alexis Knapp, with short hair. (Doesn't she look dangerous?)

• Name: RILEY
• Has lived so many places, nowhere feels like home
• Should be a junior, but she is so done with school
• Favorite class: Really? None
• Best friend: Herself
• Hobbies: Practicing survival skills
• Favorite bands: No time for music
• Favorite drink: Coffee
• Social standing: In charge and everyone knows it
• Greatest joy: When people finally decide to do things her way
• Biggest nightmare: Being eaten by a sea monster

And now, the giveway...

I'm giving away something different this time, something to inspire you when you're reading or writing—an iTunes gift certificate for $15.00.

THE RULES:
To be entered for the giveaway, you must:
1. Follow my blog
2. Post in the comment section below (be sure to include your email so I can contact the winner)
3. Share a link and comment about this giveaway, either on Twitter or Facebook or your blog. Be sure to let me know you did all three of these in your comment.

Contest ends midnight on Sunday, September 30, and I'll announce the winner next Monday—which is also the official release day for FATHOM.

Meanwhile, happy reading!

Meet the Characters from FATHOM + a Contest

Before I start this week's character introduction, I'd like to share snippets of FATHOM reviews from GOODREADS:

"Wow! Every book Merrie Destefano writes is even better than the last. I loved the books she wrote before, but Fathom is unquestionably my favorite of her stories. The characters, plot, and world are all well-developed and they sucked me right in. I spent almost an entire day immersed in Fathom, and I didn't want to leave when it ended."—Becca

"Nothing is at it seems. There are surprises and twists everywhere. This book fits right in with Merrie Destefano's past books that tend to swim in their own lane. She has a great imagination and does a wonderful job with imagery and characterization."—Cheryl

And now, for the CHARACTER OF THE WEEK...

Today you'll meet one of the mysterious teenagers that comes to Crescent Moon Bay during tourist season—Caleb.

Played by Liam Hemsworth.

• Name: CALEB
• Lives in Duncarrig
• Not attending high school
• Favorite class: Not really a class, but enjoys studying other cultures and people
• Best friend: Ethan
• Hobbies: Swimming, hunting,
• Favorite bands: Celtic music
• Favorite drink: Water
• Social standing: A quiet leader in his circle of friends
• Greatest joy: Listening to legends
• Biggest nightmare: That he will have to go to war before fulfilling his dreams

Here's a snippet of text from when Kira first sees Caleb:

This guy was gorgeous and then some. Light brown hair streaked with blonde, skin paler than you’d expect for someone as athletic as he obviously was. I couldn’t tell what color his eyes were, but I had a feeling they were green or blue. Like mine.

My heartbeat sped up when he stared at the window display. Then he did something unusual—he lifted his gaze, as if he was trying to see through to the inside of the store. He looked around, first at the racks of postcards, then at the display of starfish and shells, then at the ceramic mugs painted with our store logo, until at last, he spotted me at the counter. Our eyes locked and his lips curved in a swoon-worthy grin.
..............

And now, the giveway...

I'm giving away FOUR ARCs this time!

Here they are:
THE COMET'S CURSE by Dom Testa
THE INFECTS by Sean Beaudoin
ZOM-B by Darren Shan
GETAWAY by List Brackmann

THE RULES:
To be entered for the giveaway, you must:
1. Follow my blog
2. Post in the comment section below (be sure to include your email so I can contact the winner)
3. Share a link and comment about this giveaway, either on Twitter or Facebook or your blog. Be sure to let me know you did all three of these in your comment.

Contest ends midnight on Sunday, September 23, and I'll announce the winner next Monday.

Meanwhile, happy reading!

Winner of THE BLESSED ARC announced

Thank you to everyone who participated in the giveaway of the THE BLESSED ARC by Tonya Hurley!

The winner was selected by Random.org and is:
[drumroll here]

BOOK CHATTER CATH

Big CONGRATS!!!!

I've already contacted her via email.

Thanks again to everyone and stay tuned--there will be another ARC contest starting on in a few minutes, when I reveal another character from FATHOM.